Waifu Wars: A Food Wars Fanfic

Ch. 70 The Blonde Beauty and the Fair-Haired Maiden

            Oh s**t! thought Torrey. He's gonna kill me!

            Instinctively, he took a step backward, expecting a punch from Ryo Kurokiba. But it never came. Torrey opened his eyes slowly.

            "I heard what you did for Miss Alice," said Ryo.

            "Oh, r-really? I guess an e-explanation is in order, t-then..."

            "Nah, you don't gotta explain it to me. I'm just glad you were able to get her on the train. She can be really stubborn sometimes."

            "I'm so sorry! I didn't mean to...wait, what?"

            "Are you deaf or somethin'? I said I'm glad you were able to get Miss Alice on the train. When her tantrums get really bad, sometimes I have to literally drag her to class. So thanks for taking care of her, this time."

            "I see...well it was no trouble, I guess," said Torrey. He definitely didn't mean it; the scene with Alice caused him plenty of trouble.

            "You look tense."

            "I AM tense."

            "Well, whatever. I said my piece, now I'm leaving," said Ryo, turning to head towards the next car over.

            "Wait! Aren't you always with Alice? How come you missed the uh...kerfuffle?"

            "After you told her that you wanted to talk about something, she told me to go on and board the train. Remember? Geez, you must be deaf AND stupid."

            "I remember just fine! I thought this would be a good chance for some poorly written exposition. You know, to clarify things for the readers."

            "What the hell are you talking about?"

            "Never mind. Later," said Torrey, trudging off to his room. Thanks to his conversations with Ryoko Sakaki and Ryo Kurokiba, he was starting to feel better about everything. A good night's sleep was actually within reach.

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            Stage Three wouldn't officially be kicking off for another three days, though the train was scheduled to arrive at the venue the next morning. The Student Council had agreed to demonstrate a degree of fairness and integrity for this challenge- in spite of all the tricks that Azami had employed up until this point, they still had an image to uphold, after all. They're the best of the best, and the focus of their plan is to stomp out the Resistance on the merits of their own abilities.

            When Torrey awoke the next morning, he remembered something important. I totally forgot to set the theme for our match! Should I ask the girls what they want to do? Hmm...that would be really awkward.

            Knowing that he wasn't on speaking terms with either of his oppontents, Torrey formulated a plan that would help him gather the courage to approach them. It started the same way as any decent plan, with breakfast and a coffee. He quickly got dressed, packed his bag, and headed down to the dining car.

When Torrey arrived, he saw Alice absent-mindedly stirring her coffee with a spoon. Ryo was sitting at her side, looking out the window with disinterest.

            Alice noticed Torrey and looked up at him for a moment, before promptly returning her gaze to the coffee. It was so different from her usual, enthusiastic greeting that it sent a sharp pang into Torrey's heart. He forced himself to continue on, taking a seat at the closest table to Alice and Ryo.